The State Republican Archive

The State Republican was a four-page paper published each Thursday in Jefferson City in Cole County, Missouri. Its first edition was issued on December 19, 1889, as the successor of the Weekly News, which "went to the wall in October."

According to a statement by the Daily Tribune which appeared in the January 2, 1890 issue of the Republican, the latter would "....be republican to the backbone in politics. It is owned and edited by Jacob C. Fisher and Sylvester W. Cox, and Frank Fulkerson is the business manager. The republican party at the state capital has felt the need of an organ for some time, and the paper starts out with good prospects for success."

The same issue also printed the encouraging words of the Central Missouri Republican of Boonville which stated: "A paper called The State Republican....has been started at Jefferson City. We hope it will be kept going. The first number is well edited, newsy, readable and very promising. It ought to succeed, and we hope it will. Jefferson City needs a live republican paper and this one seems to be alive. The republicans of Cole County ought to support it, keep it alive, and help it to convert the mossbacks and wake up the sleepy members of the party in that county."

The State Republican traces its origins to the State Journal which was active in Jefferson City between 1872 and 1886. Initially a Republican paper, the Journal changed its politics to Democratic but soon after ceased publication. Immediately thereafter, Sylvester W. Cox, a member of the Missouri Legislature, launched the State Times, publishing the first issue on August 13, 1886. Cox continued on with the volume numbering of the Journal. The State Times published its last issue on October 5, 1888. It was immediate succeeded by the Weekly News under the editorship of Robert S. Cruikshank. When the Weekly News ended its brief run the following year, the State Republican began publishing.

With the April 7, 1892 issue of the Republican, G. S. Robbins assumed the duties of managing the paper and handling the coverage of local news. However, Fulkerson remained with the Republican, devoting his time to outside soliciting and job work. In August of 1892, Robbins left the paper. Jacob C. Fisher served as editor and publisher of theState Republican from 1893 until May 1896 when the paper ceased publication.